Goal Setting for 2022
New year, new goals; welcome to 2022.
To be honest, some of these are ‘new goals’, but there are also some old goals that I am going to work on and get completed. (Looking at you specifically “Cross Stitch”!)
For Christmas, I received a Daruma doll. It is a Japanese, papier-mâché doll that is modelled after the founder of Zen Buddhism, Bodhidharma.
You may notice that he currently has no eyes. Possibly you are also wondering what this has to do with goal setting?
Daruma dolls are a symbol of perseverance, so they make excellent gifts for the end of the year. You are able to buy them in temples all over Japan (or online if that’s a bit too far to pop for a present)
The idea is that as you set your goal for the year you fill in one of the eyes. (I have now done this and given him a beautiful anime -style eye!) Then, once you have succeeded in your task, you colour in the other eye.
Giving him ‘full sight’.
The doll stands in a prominent place to remind you daily of your task and to keep striving to complete it.
There is also a tradition, that at the end of the year the Daruma are returned to the temple for ritual burning (and you can buy another one while you’re there)
As you can see, it is time to set my goals. So let’s have a look at them.
Articles and posts about goals and lists you may enjoy:
- 5 things to consider when writing your Bucket List
- Why you need a plan
- My main plan
- Using your time wisely
The life I want to live
I have been working for the last month or so with a life coach to help me focus on my goals and get where I want to be. A number of values have emerged that I want to start incorporating into my everyday life.
My obvious passions are writing, learning and Japan. We discussed that I would be more motivated if I knew that what I was doing, on a daily basis, was fulfilling these passions.
I still have to go to work, at the moment, but I also need to decide how I choose to spend my own time.
A while ago I wrote a piece about creating versus consuming, and I am still guilty of allowing content to just wash over me, rather than create my own work. This year I intend to be proactive in curating the life I want to live, and it will contain more writing, more learning, both of which will tie-in – often tenuously – to my love of all things Japan.
Goal #1 for 2022: Plan ahead and be better prepared
Planning prevents problems and promotes a positive place.
I want to get into a mindset where I have no need to rush around last minute because all of the important things are done. I will be working on my procrastination and desire for perfectionism, which is often why things don’t get done. It is better to do things poorly than not at all – you can always go back over them and review them later.
With better organisation, I will have the ability to write, work on my studies and enjoy my free time without feeling guilty that I should be doing other things.
The things I want to try
Every year I select a few things from the Kettle List, the 40 x 40 and the Bristol Bucket List to get done. Often I cheat and pick ones I know I already have something planned for. Sometimes I pick something and don’t even think about it for the rest of the year, or more honestly, don’t factor in time for it.
This year I have selected a mixture of things that are definitely achievable, ones I’m technically doing anyway, and ones that are more challenging.
Goal #2a The Kettle List
#5 Learn to play an instrument
#6 Take dance lessons – I’m already doing this, but I want to progress up a level
#10 Run – My friend and I are signing up for the Tough Mudder in August
#22 Visit 5 European Capitals – Would love to tick one off for this task. Madrid? Stockholm?
#27 Complete a cross stitch – It is time to get this one ticked off, it has been one there for too long
#31 Go on a Zen retreat
Goal #2b The 40 x 40 List
#9 Lose a stone – This needs to happen this year. With my Tough Mudder training this should be a shoe in.
#11 Visit every ceremonial county in England – Not all of them, obviously, but would good to tick a few more off
#15 Waist deep in the sea – Every year I say I will do this, and I got so close in 2021. This is my year!
Goal #2c The Bristol Bucket List
We have been promised an amazing UPFEST this year, so I will be there for that.
Try indoor climbing -If I am getting fit, this is the year to try this task.
The home I want to live in
You’ve got the vibe, right? Each of the headers is from the menu of the site? See. It’s all planned and organised, there is a method in my madness.
2020 was a good year for ‘Polly’s Pad’ (As in my literal pad, where we all live). We filled 5 skips and emptied the junk room. (Mostly Hannah to be honest, she is the best ‘trauma cleaner’ I know)
This year we are looking to decorate at least one of the rooms fully and get the bathroom done. Sadly it is all cash-dependent, so the kids and I may need to investigate a few Youtube videos and develop our DIY skills. Toby and I have already proven ourselves to be Mario-level plumbers after unblocking the toilet, and Hannah is a dab hand with a flat-pack. Ethan is good at smashing things with a hammer, which I am sure will be useful at some point.
I’ve also treated myself to a wallpaper stripper, so all I need now is the time and energy. We’ll soon have this place looking great.
Having a ‘home I am happy with’ (#41) is not just about decor though. As well as our major declutter of the junk room, I want to create a Zen-like peaceful space that promotes creativity and calm. To this end not only am I decluttering the house but I will complete my declutter of my Social Media and of all my paperwork.
This is something I intended to do as part of my 2020 ōsōji. By the end of the year when I do the ‘Big Clean 2022’ there is going to be a lot less to clean!
Goal #3 Fully decorate one of the rooms
I feel like if I commit to a whole room, rather than pottering about the place doing small bits I will have achieved something more significant in my quest to get the house how I want it.
Posts about minimalism and decluttering:
- Must reads before you start your declutter
- What can you do today to start your declutter?
- Reverse Decluttering
- Making a start
The things I want to learn
Apart from DIY skills, and the dance lessons, and the ability to plan and organise my life, this year I want to sit my N5 JLPT. The Japanese Language Proficiency Test.
The tests take place in July and December, so depending on how confident I feel will depend on which one I sit.
I feel I am improving, I just need to focus more on listening and speaking, not just reading.
Goal #4 Take an exam in Japanese
Once I have passed the exam I feel I can tick this task off, even though I will continue to study and learn the language. The end goal is to be fluent.
Goals and why you need them
You may not be particularly interested in what a random woman on the internet has planned for the rest of the year, but it is important that you set yourself some goals to achieve in 2022.
It’s been a strange decade, the 2020’s and it has been hard to plan ahead, what with all the uncertainty and Covid. But it’s not an excuse to give up. There are still things you can do or work towards.
Can’t go abroad? Maybe plan your trip, or start saving up to make it even better when you do get to go.
Feeling disenfranchised because everything is online, even a few of your social activities? My Toastmasters group hasn’t met in ‘real life’ since March 2020 – it’s been Zoomed for almost 2 years now. Things are opening up now, try and get outside in the fresh air – safely. A quick walk around the block can sometimes be the energiser we need.
It is hard to not feel that life is on hold – but there are things you can do towards your dreams, even if it is only to create a vision board or detailed list of all the tasks you could break your plan down into.
There are a number of posts here about goal setting, challenges and the wonder of lists.
Let’s make 2022 our year to flourish.
We can continue to grow into our skills, focus on what we can do, and get that done.
